The Nassau County Department of Parks, Recreation and Museums provides a total of seven golf courses to accommodate players with a range of skills. In addition, there are three driving ranges, and for children and families two mini-golf courses, in Eisenhower Park in East Meadow and Cantiague Park in Hicksville
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| PGA Tour golfer Jay Haas at the Red Course in Eisenhower Park during the Commerce Bank Championship. |
At Eisenhower Park, three of Long Island’s finest golf courses are open to the public, including the famed “Red” course. The Red course has a storied history, having been designed by prominent golf architect Devereux Emmet in 1914 and having hosted PGA championships as far back as 1926. More recently, the Red course played host to the PGA Tour’s Commerce Bank Championship.
A second championship-level course, the White, was designed by Robert Trent Jones, a major 20th-century architect of American courses. Jones also designed the third 18-hole course at Eisenhower, the Blue.
Eisenhower Park has an excellent driving range with 60 bays and night hours in season. Two other County parks provide driving ranges: Cantiague Park, centrally located in Hicksville; and North Woodmere Park, located by the water in the southwest corner of the county.
In addition, there are four executive-level 9-hole golf courses that are perfect for a relaxing morning or afternoon of practice. These courses are conveniently spread around the County park system at the
following parks:
In Survey, Long Island Press Touts Two County Parks Among Top Three,
Eisenhower Golf No. 2 Among Public Courses
The Long Island Press has named Eisenhower Park and Wantagh Park among its top three parks on Long Island and the Eisenhower Park golf facility as No. 2 among public golf courses, announced Nassau County Executive Ed Mangano. The rankings were provided by the weekly newspaper in its “Best of L.I.” survey for 2010, published in January. The comprehensive annual survey covers 215 categories and is based on voting by tens of thousands of the newspaper’s readers.
For Eisenhower Park, the second-place finish comes on the heels of being selected for the top spot in 2009. Wantagh Park placed right behind Eisenhower at No. 3 among Long Island’s best parks. In designating Jones Beach Park No. 1, the Long Island Press acknowledged the difficulty of selecting a top finisher. “There are so many great parks on Long Island that it’s really hard to pick the best one,” the newspaper said. “So let’s just consider this list the best of the best.”
Centrally located in East Meadow off Merrick Avenue and larger than Central Park, 930-acre Eisenhower Park (516-572-0347) is the flagship of the Nassau County parks system. The park offers a variety of recreational opportunities, including a swimming pool and fitness center at the world-class Nassau County Aquatic Center (572-0501); mini-golf; a batting cage; athletic fields; playgrounds; a 2-mile fitness trail; basketball and tennis courts; bocci and lawn bowling; and the Harry Chapin Lakeside Theatre. In addition, the park includes large and beautiful memorials to the nation’s veterans and victims of the 9/11 attacks.
There’s also the Eisenhower Park golf facility, one of the metropolitan area’s busiest courses and selected second-best in the Long Island Press survey of public golf courses. Golf at Eisenhower consists of three 18-hole courses –including the championship Red and White courses, along with the Blue course – as well as a driving range with 60 bays. During the winter, the White and Blue courses (572-0327/28) are open as weather allows, along with the driving range (572-0336).
Wantagh Park (572-7460), located off the Wantagh Parkway by Merrick Road, is one of the most scenic spots on the South Shore, offering 111 acres on beautiful East Bay. The park provides numerous opportunities for recreation, including ball fields and athletic courts, a playground, picnic areas, a two-mile fitness trail, a marina, and a fishing pier. During summer, Wantagh’s spectacular water theme park (previously named “Best Public Pool” by the Long Island Press) has an Olympic-sized main pool, a diving pool, a “kiddie” pool, training pool, an interactive water-play area and two 30-foot waterslides.
Golf Digest Accords Eisenhower Park Red Course a Four-Star Rating
Golf Digest magazine has included the Red course at Eisenhower Park among its “Four Stars Best Places to Play 2008/2009,” recognition granted to a select number of courses throughout the U.S.
The monthly magazine’s four-star ranking is reserved for courses considered “outstanding” and worthy of “plan[ning] your next vacation around.” In its comments section, Golf Digest noted several of the course’s attributes, including “great price,” “great shape,” “phenomenal big greens” and “beautiful walk in the park.”
The Red, one of three 18-hole golf courses at Eisenhower Park, has a storied history. It was designed in 1914 by a prominent local golf course architect, Devereux Emmet, and was originally part of the exclusive Salisbury Golf Club, begun by wealthy Long Islanders such as A.T. Stewart, a 19th-century retailer and property magnate who founded the Village of Garden City.
In 1926, the course hosted the PGA Championship and legendary golfer Walter Hagan, and in recent years PGA Tour golfers have gathered at the course for the Commerce Bank Championship. The par-72-course is 7,107 yards from the championship tees.
The two other 18-hole courses at Eisenhower Park, the White and Blue, were granted three stars (“very good”) by Golf Digest. In addition to the course, Eisenhower Park offers a driving range with 60 bays. For more information about golf at Eisenhower Park, call 516-572-0327/28.
The jewel of Nassau County’s park system and centrally located in East Meadow off Merrick Avenue between Hempstead Turnpike and Old Country Road, Eisenhower Park is 930 acres and offers a range of recreational activities.
Newsday Ranks Eisenhower "Red" Among Top 10 Public Golf Courses on the Island
In May 2007, Newsday ranked the Eisenhower "Red" golf course at Eisenhower Park No. 4 among its top 10 public golf course on Long Island.
The Red course, one of three 18-hole golf courses at Eisenhower Park, has a storied history. Originally, it was part of the exclusive Salisbury Golf Club, begun by wealthy Long Islanders such as A.T. Stewart, a 19th-century retailer and property magnate who founded the Village of Garden City. The Red was designed in 1914 by a prominent local golf course architect, Devereux Emmet, who was married to one of Stewart’s nieces. Emmet was also a descendant of Thomas Addison Emmet, a founder of New York City’s Tammany Hall political machine.
Most of Emmet’s courses were designed during the era of hickory-shafted clubs and were short by current standards, at around 6,000 yards. (The U.S. Golf Association did not accept the use of steel shafts until 1924.) Today, the course measures 7,030 yards from the championship tees, 6,784 yards from the middle tees, and 5,588 yards from the forward tees. Working with PGA Tour architects, the Parks Department’s experienced golf crew is continually enhancing the quality of this championship course.
The Red course’s history with championship golf goes back to 1926, when the course hosted the PGA Championship. In that contest, legendary golfer Walter Hagan won the third of four consecutive PGA titles, capturing an $11,100 purse in the process. More recently, the Red course played host to the PGA Tour’s Commerce Bank Championship. PGA golfer Lee Trevino has called Eisenhower Red “one of the better and one of the toughest courses we play.”
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